{ program notes tour of China with the Gothenburg Symphony and a European tour with the London Philharmonic . Other highlights of the 2015 – 2016 season included debuts with the Rotterdam Philharmonic , a recital at the Amsterdam Concertgebouw and a second engagement with Gatti and the Orchestre National de France .
On Bastille Day in 2015 , Mr . Chen joined the Orchestre National de France for a televised concert on the Champsde-Mars in Paris in front of an audience of over 800,000 .
In 2012 Ray Chen became the youngest soloist ever to perform in the televised Nobel Prize Concert for the Nobel Laureates and the Swedish Royal Family .
Mr . Chen , who has more than 2 million followers on Sound Cloud , helps to expand the audience for classical music by increasing its appeal via social media platforms . His quirky , self-made online videos have broadened the reach of classical music through humor and education . As part of his quest to break down barriers between music , fashion and pop culture , Mr . Chen is supported by Giorgio Armani and was recently featured in Vogue magazine .
Mr . Chen ’ s “ Virtuoso ,” a recital of works by Bach , Tartini , Franck and Wieniawski , and an album of Mendelssohn and Tchaikovsky concertos with Swedish Radio Orchestra were both released on Sony . “ Virtuoso ” was distinguished with the prestigious ECHO Klassik award . His third recording , an all-Mozart album with Christoph Eschenbach and the Schleswig-Holstein Festival Orchestra , was released in January 2014 .
Born in Taiwan and raised in Australia , Ray was accepted to the Curtis Institute of Music at age 15 , where he studied with Aaron Rosand and was supported by Young Concert Artists . He plays the 1715 “ Joachim ” Stradivarius violin on loan from the Nippon Music Foundation .
Ray Chen last appeared with the BSO in May 2014 , performing Tchaikovsky ' s Violin Concerto , Hans Graf , conductor .
About the concert :
Violin Concerto No . 1 in D Major
Niccolò Paganini
Born in Genoa , Italy , October 27 , 1782 ; died in Nice , France , May 27 , 1840
So astounding were the feats Niccolò Paganini performed on his violin that people whispered he had made a Faustian pact with the devil to obtain his skills . These rumors seemed to be confirmed by his strange appearance and the uncanny spell he cast over his listeners . Wracked by ill health all his life , Paganini was as thin as a cadaver , with a ghostly pale complexion and long stringy hair . Not only did he introduce virtuoso techniques never used before on the violin , he inspired other musicians — notably Franz Liszt — to contrive ear-popping feats on their own instruments . And his technical wizardry — his mastery of double-stopping the strings to produce more than a single note at a time , his use of a challenging new bowing technique and his ability to easily access the highest notes of the instrument — was soon decoded and adopted by subsequent violinists .
Paganini ’ s technical wizardry was soon decoded and adopted by subsequent violinists .
However , Paganini was much more than a stuntman on the violin , and his many compositions for the instrument — both solo , in chamber ensembles and with the orchestra — show a fine creative musician at work . His Violin Concerto No . 1 in D Major was probably composed around 1817 when he was still only known as a traveling virtuoso within his native Italy . Paganini loved the world of Italian opera and especially the music of its then greatest practitioner , Gioachino Rossini ; the irresistible melodies that fill this Concerto pay obvious tribute to him .
Movement one : This is a soloist ’ s concerto par excellence . However , first the orchestra builds up dramatic anticipation for the belated appearance of the violinist with a huge exposition , opening with an emphatic chord . Here we meet the orchestra ’ s two major themes : the first , a dashing , upward-hurtling melody full of Italian bravura ; the second , a touchingly plaintive melody introduced by an ensemble of woodwinds . The violinist enters , not with the orchestra ’ s bravura theme , but with a quiet , lyrical one of his own , which displays not only his beautiful singing tone , but also his ability to span big leaps and cover the instrument ’ s range from top to bottom . Eventually , he moves on to the woodwinds ’ plaintive theme , imbuing it with even more tenderness . This is capped by a spectacular cadenza-like passage of fleet virtuosity .
Often punctuated by big “ look at this !” orchestral chords , the development section is a series of episodes in which the violinist successively demonstrates his prowess both as technician and as lyrical singer .
After this gigantic movement , the remaining two are of more moderate dimensions . In the B-minor Adagio second movement , the orchestra opens with all the melodramatic pathos of a tragic opera scene . And here the violinist is asked to thrill us with his expressiveness rather than his technical chops . Throughout , he must play the great soprano diva , moving us to tears .
The vivacious rondo finale shifts the spotlight back to virtuosity . Its ebullient rondo refrain emphasizes one of Paganini ’ s signature abilities : to use the ricochet stroke , in which the bow bounces lightly on the strings to produce a series of quick , short notes . Two episodes intervene between returns of this playful theme . In the second of them , listen to the extraordinary passages where the violin , in extreme high register , imitates the fragile , glistening sound of the flute .
Instrumentation : Two flutes , two oboes , two clarinets , bassoon , contrabassoon , two horns , two trumpets , three trombones , timpani , percussion , strings .
March – APRIL 2017 | Overture 31